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Monthly Archives: December 2015

To celebrate the release of Listen to the Moon (about a very proper valet and a snarky maid-of-all-work who marry to get a plum job), here is the traditional free short story about the characters of my last book, True Pretenses.

It’s probably no surprise to anyone that I’ve been reading a lot about Aaron Burr. He was in England in 1808-9, and I kept coming up with different crossover scenarios where my characters met him. A few weeks ago, I spent some time fantasizing about Ash and Rafe running a con on him, and when Courtney Milan and Jenni requested I actually write it, I couldn’t resist.

The story follows directly from this passage in Burr’s journal, when he “[l]ost or spent 28 shillings and a pair of gloves” in Birmingham on Christmas Eve 1808, on his way to Edinburgh. As it happens, Ash mentions in True Pretenses that he was in Yorkshire on Christmas Eve 1808—in Dewsbury, to be exact, where they ring a bell once for each year since Christ’s birth.

Dewsbury is just off the Great North Road, north of Birmingham and south of Edinburgh…

In this scene, from early in the book, Sukey and Toogood are cleaning the kitchen together, and Toogood is also partway through cleaning Sukey’s boots, because it was stressing him out how dirty they were. My little perfectionist baby. Okay not little, he’s very tall, but. Continue reading →

Hi everyone! This is a spoiler-friendly discussion and questions post for Listen to the Moon. I’d love to hear anything you have to say about the book! And if there’s anything you want to know (about the book, about writing the book, about characters in the book, about what happens next, anything really), this is a good place to ask.

The True Pretenses short story, in which Ash and Rafe con Aaron Burr, will be up in January!

And now it’s time for me to take reader suggestions for a Listen to the Moon short story!

I’ll take suggestions of any kind, in any format, as detailed or vague as you like. What ifs, alternate universes, missing scenes, backstory, and future scenes are all fair game. Feel free to treat your comment like a mini-brainstorming session if you want!

Legal stuff: by submitting a comment on this post, you permit Rose Lerner to develop your story idea without any expectation of financial compensation or remuneration. The resulting story will be available to readers free of charge.

Some suggestions to get the ball rolling:

1. Sukey and Toogood are struck by lightning and swap bodies.
2. Sukey works at a coffee kiosk and Toogood owns the upscale classic-cocktail bar across the street.
3. Nora Khaleel and Imogen Makepeace go to the fair together.
4. Sukey learns she’s a fairy changling, and she and Toogood have to journey to Faerie to get back the human baby she was swapped for.
5. Footman Toogood babysitting little Nick at Tassell Hall.

Sukey got sent out to run an errand in the rain by her boss, and John went with her. Now a storm has come up, Sukey has fallen (but why?? how?? into/out of/off what?? read the book to find out!), and they’ve taken shelter in a barn…